In a Whirl (Legend)

[Niko Vesper]

Gardeon

Niko had had a lot on his mind for quite a while up to that point. Ever since a couple months ago, he'd "enjoyed" a fair bit of inactivity while recovering from frostbite, and he unfortunately hadn't enjoyed it much up to that point. It wasn't surprising to him that he'd need time to recover - in his state, there was only so much he could be expected to do - but even still...having to put his usual work on hold just didn't entirely sit right with him.

If only he could recover faster, he thought...Or, better yet, if only he hadn't gotten his legs frostbitten in the first place.

At least the warm waters of western Lake Laleh were providing him and Regent some physical comfort. Niko being able to sit comfortably on the lake's edge was a relief from the mindless tedium of the past few days, and to Regent, the natural beauty provided some peace of mind. It was a nice spot they'd found, for sure, and Niko could see why it was flanked with all sorts of fancy resorts. And yeah, one of those places might've been nice to check out...but for the time being, he felt content where he was.

[Gardeon]

The cold wind of the season blew over the lake, the warmth of the days sun about contained within the water and clearly enough to keep a lot of water types close to the surface where it was staying instead of deeper down where the coolness of the night was already pretty clear. All the same the sun was remaining in the sky, for a little bit, and the pokemon of the lake seemed content to share their space with the trainer and his team.

Beyond that, there were very few people around the lake itself. Maybe it was to do with the cold season or the fact it was still a little early for tourists to come visiting, or maybe it was down to the time of day and the fact night would be here before long. For the moment, on the very far side of the lake closest to the forest, there seemed to be one person who was, maybe fishing?

[Niko Vesper]

Gardeon

Funnily enough, it'd taken a little while for Niko to register how late it'd gotten since he arrived. It wasn't quite nighttime, clearly, but it would only be a matter of time before it was. How long had he been there, exactly? 

Regardless of that question, though, Niko supposed that it was a bit of a blessing to him that the lake maintained some warmth despite the coldness of the season, especially at that time of day. He couldn't exactly have seen himself able to enjoy the tranquility of the lake very much otherwise, after all. He didn't have to pay much mind to the temperature, or the native wildlife that was milling about. However, Regent would eventually find her attention drawn towards something rather odd.

"Who's that?" she asked, nudging Niko and pointing towards a faraway figure. 

Niko struggled to get a good look at them, the distance between the two and the dim light of the evening making it hard to make much out. "That's probably a fisherman or something," he reasoned.

Regent remained suspicious. "A fisherman? At this time of day?"

"Whatever they're doing over there, it's probably not a big deal," Niko shrugged, content to stay where they were for the time being. Regent, on the other hand, wasn't entirely convinced that things were so simple, and decided to keep a close eye on the figure.

[Gardeon]

AS the group remained where they were, the low light of the evening made it hard to look much beyond the water and the grassy edges which sloped down in to the mud leading to it. There was little to see beyond the odd wild pokemon moving around in the water itself, or the odd fish pokemon hopping out of it. That and a few wild pokemon coming down to drink from the water, the darker hues of the forest seemingly revealing more shadows and shapes as time passed.

On the far side of the lake, the figure did not more. They remained, slightly leaning forwards over the water and sloped to one side a little, something reaching down to the water to touch it enough to send the odd ripple out across the blue surface. They were still, very still, even as the wind blew around the lake and the water rippled in new patterns, they remained there.

[Niko Vesper]

Gardeon

Just like before, a good amount of time was able to pass without Niko really giving it much thought, his attention mostly focused on the lake itself. Without anything all too noteworthy happening within or around it, he was able to find some contentment witnessing the small bits of activity here and there and watching the light ripples of the lake that followed them. However, if there was one thing that didn't show much activity, it was the odd figure that Regent had spotted previously.

Regent had stopped to look back at the figure at regular intervals, and she couldn't help but notice that they hadn't seemed to have done much of anything since they'd first been viewed. She expected some light shifting, or even a voice, but she couldn't notice much of anything. After a while, she decided enough was enough, and nudged Niko in order to get his attention before pointing to the figure yet again.

"What, are they doing something weird?" he asked. After looking for a few seconds, he slowly began to see what Regent seemed so bothered by. "Funny. I don't remember them doing much of anything since they showed up."

"Exactly," Regent replied, stepping away from Niko and towards the faraway figure. "C'mon, let's go and see what they're doing over there."

Niko frowned at the prospect of his tranquility being interrupted, but he supposed that he had to get up and moving at some point. Plus, he had to admit that he was a bit curious about what the figure was doing there. Getting himself upright again and putting his shoes back on, he reluctantly followed Regent towards the figure's location.

[Gardeon]

As the group wandered closer to the other person, he would be easier to make out. The first thing Niko would notice, what with the press on it at the moment and the training he had received around the group would be the coloring of the clothing the man had on. It was a simple toga like outfit with something akin to a cross between sandals and boots, however the obvious thing was that it was all entirely Blue, and White.

He was indeed leaning over the lake, one hand in the water and his eyes closed. Nothing about him seemed to move beyond the breeze sometimes picking up the edges of his pale hair and lifting it around his face, though it seemed to always settle back in to place again after a short time. Even as the group left the water, moved closer and came to look at him, the male never seemed to move.

[Niko Vesper]

Gardeon

Moving closer to the oddly-still figure, Niko didn't have to wait too long to start noticing new details about the stranger. Their outfit seemed fairly noteworthy, as it wasn't a look he saw most people wear, even in a place like Lake Laleh. Perhaps there was some purpose to the dress he wasn't aware of? Additionally, it soon became clear that the stranger was no fisherman, since they seemed to have no fishing rod to speak of. Just a hand in the water and nothing else.

Niko saw no clear reaction from the stranger, even as he drew near. Getting close enough to really get a good look at the stranger, they seemed to just be a strange man decked out in blue and white, in the middle something or other. Perhaps they were meditating? In any case, they'd clearly been doing it for a while, and Niko figured it'd be a good idea to pull the stranger out of whatever sort of trance they were in, even if only for a moment.

"It's getting late," he said softly. "Are you going to be here long?"

[Gardeon]

As the officer spoke, for a moment, nothing happened. The breeze still blew over the water and tugged at the hair of both of the males and the water merely burbled along, pokemon moving nearby and the day seeming quite normal. And then the male turned his head, looking to the trainer with eyes which held nothing but pure white.

"It is? I hadn't noticed...." came an airy voice from the man, his mouth appearing as the same white void as his eyes as he spoke, his hand still in the water and the only thing moving about the person being that his head twisted to the side and his eyes opened, mouth moving to speak, while the rest of his body seemed to remain frozen in place. Not even his chest moved to show he was breathing, only the wind playing with his hair around his face.

[Niko Vesper]

Gardeon

Niko got a strong feeling of déjà vu as the stranger turned to him and spoke. He'd hoped for a bit more of a response after such a long trek to the stranger's location, but instead, all Niko got was two short sentences, neither of which gave him any insight as to what he was doing there.

Niko couldn't dwell on such feelings for long, though, as he found himself caught off-guard by what he noticed about the stranger. The man was almost uncanny, with his eyes and mouth as pale as his hair, and on closer inspection, Niko couldn't even see him breathing. Why was that? Was the man a Gijinka or something? That could explain it, he figured, but he would have to press a little further if he were to confirm this as being the case.

"You've been here for a while, it seems, doing...Actually, I'm still not sure what you're doing. Could you enlighten me, please?"

[Gardeon]

The paler man seemed to watch the other for a good few moments, taking in his words and listening, another long pause holding in the air before he pulled his hand from the water in a fluid motion. His eyes seemed to roll backwards, a much more human eye with the normal pupil and everything else now there and the glow behind his mouth was gone as he replied, water droplets dripping from his fingers and in to the lake as he spoke.

"Am i meant to answer anyone who questions these things? I was trying to speak to my father, it's not the easiest of tasks, but with focus it can be done" he asked at first, his smile a little cold as he tried to grow something of a happy expression on his face at first. It didnt meet his eyes and as he went on, one eye glanced to the lake beside him and then back to the trainer again, his gaze moving over his form slowly, curiously.

[Niko Vesper]

Gardeon

Though it was just as surprising as seeing the man's pale-white features for the first time, seeing the stranger's eyes and mouth become much closer to what Niko would expect to see from a human was oddly fascinating. With that, he was certain that the man had to be a Gijinka of some sort, though that still only did so much to help explain what he was doing at the lake at such a late hour.

 The Gijinka apparently trying to speak with his father piqued Niko's curiosity straight away. If he was a Gijinka, then that would suggest that his father was a Pokemon of some sort, right? That was how they worked, as far as Niko was aware. Of course, it didn't seem like he was speaking to anyone, but considering what he was in the middle of, he supposed it could've been some sort of telepathic communication. That idea didn't seem too far-fetched, but even with his own deductions, there were still some things he couldn't quite piece together.

"I see. Sorry to interrupt you, then," Niko said. "I wouldn't've guessed you were doing something like that. Is there a specific reason why you're doing that here?"

[Gardeon]

The man raised an eyebrow, looking over the trainer in front of him and allowing his eyes to take in as much information as they could as he listened to the other male. "Oh? What would you have assumed was going on?" he found himself asking, his voice plain and matter of fact as he spoke, none of the normal edge of curiosity one might expect leaking in to it.

"I chose here because the beach is a little too busy at the moment, and I need to focus to do it so going to the river can be dangerous since its got a pretty strong current and moves fast" he explained in the next moment, his tone as simple as it could be once more. His eyes were still moving over the trainer, before moving to his pokemon, seemingly trying to take in as much as he could.

[Niko Vesper]

Gardeon

Niko gave a tentative shrug at the stranger's question. "I guess I thought you were meditating." That'd been Niko's initial thought when he first got a good look at the strange man, and he felt like if he hadn't gotten an answer out of him, he probably still would've had that as his leading theory. It was as good an explanation as anything else one could think up, as far as he was concerned.

Listening to the stranger's explanation for why he was at the lake, it sounded to him like the communication involved bodies of water in some way. If that was the case, then he supposed that his reason for coming there was perfectly understandable. Still, though, some part of him felt like he needed to know a little more about the stranger and his father. Was it just his curiosity? Maybe. In any case, that's what he went with in his head.

"Well, that makes sense. Just be sure to wrap up before it gets too dark, or getting back home will be a nightmare. Believe me, I've been there." Niko brought his hand to his chin as he looked over the man who was looking over him in turn. "My name's Niko, by the way. Can I get your name, sir?"

[Gardeon]

The male smirked a little at the other mans words, tilting his head from side to side at his comment on meditating before he listened to the male question him, but shook his head. "For yourself, and your team, maybe. But no, travel under the night sky is no issue" he found himself replying before the other man went on and the paler of the duo seemed to pause to think.

His eyes moved over Niko's form, looking to the pokeballs he had and then to the pokemon around the trainer before he twisted in place and held out a hand. "Derin" he replied simply, the stiffness of his hand a little odd, like something he had worked on or practised but wasnt used to doing naturally.

[Niko Vesper]

Gardeon

Niko sat down on a nearby rock, his legs feeling a bit too worse for wear, as his interaction with the Gijinka continued. To his mild surprise, the man apparently wasn't too worried about traveling through the wild at night. That was a bit odd to him, as he'd looked the man over and hadn't noted anything that would help one navigate in the dark or anything. Then again, he reasoned, the man clearly had some interesting Gijinka properties, so perhaps he didn't need any help.

Plus, the man didn't seem like someone who was used to interacting with humans. The way he held out his hand struck Niko as strangely unnatural, not unlike how he'd composed himself before, and just didn't seem like what he'd expect from most people. Did he live in the wild or something? That seemed like an interesting thing to ask about, but for the time being, Niko was content to shake his hand and give him a friendly reply.

"Derin, eh? Nice to meet you. I'll admit I didn't expect to see too many people here at this time of day. Most people would've gone home by now. What about you? Do you come to places like these to speak to your father a lot?"